New treatment for migraines is effective in a Phase III trial

A new treatment for migraines is very effective and well tolerated, according to a paper published in Neurology. Two years ago I mentioned on this blog that this new migraine drug did well in Phase II trial and now the results of Phase III also appear to be very positive. The study was double-blind and placebo-controlled and involved more than 1,200 patients. The drug’s chemical name is telcagepant and it belongs to a new family of migraine drugs, CGRP antagonists. They work on a different receptor than the triptans (sumatriptan or Imitrex and similar drugs) and appear to be as effective. Possible advantages of this drug are that it may work when triptans are ineffective and it does not appear to constrict coronary blood vessels, which can happen, albeit rarely, with triptans.